Gaming machines which provide players awards in primary or base games are well known. Gaming machines generally require the player to place or make a primary or base wager to activate the primary or base game. In many of these gaming machines, the award may be based on the player obtaining a winning symbol or symbol combination and on the amount of the primary or base wager (e.g., the higher the wager, the higher the award).
Certain known gaming machines may include a plurality of reels and one or more predetermined paylines. Such gaming machines may include a suitable number of reels, such as three to five reels, which each display any suitable number of symbols per reel, such as three symbols per reel. In such gaming machines, the player initiates the spinning of the reels by making one or more wagers on one or more paylines. Such gaming machines may have one, three, five, nine, fifteen, twenty-five or any other suitable number of predetermined paylines which may be horizontal, vertical, diagonal or any combination thereof. The player wagers on a player selected number or combination of predetermined paylines, such as one, two, three, five, ten or fifteen paylines and the reels may be activated to spin.
After the reels spin to display a plurality of symbols, these gaming machines analyze the displayed symbols to determine if the gaming machine may have randomly generated any winning symbols or winning symbol combinations on or along any of the wagered on predetermined paylines. Any awards associated with any winning symbols or winning symbol combinations generated along any wagered on predetermined paylines may be provided to the player. In such gaming machines, symbols or symbol combinations which are less likely to occur usually provide higher awards.
In other known types of gaming machines, a payout may be provided based on a “scatter pay.” A scatter pay may include a pay for the occurrence of designated symbols anywhere on the symbol display. In these gaming machines, symbols generated on the symbol display may be evaluated for winning combinations as if the symbols were generated along a traditional payline of adjacently arranged symbols.
In another type of known gaming machines with reels, the player wagers on a number of ways to win, wherein any award provided to the player may be based on the number of associated symbols which may be generated in active symbol positions on a requisite number of adjacent reels. In these ways to win gaming machines, any award provided to the player may not be based on any paylines that would have passed through the generated winning symbol combination, but rather may be determined based on if any formed strings of related symbols on adjacent reels are associated with any awards.
There is a continuing need to increase player enjoyment and excitement, and specifically to increase player enjoyment and entertainment with new and different symbol evaluation features.